TURKEY: CHRISTIANS MAY APPEAL FINE FOR ‘ILLEGAL’ FUNDS
Compass Direct News
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Ma rch 27 2009
Converts accused of ‘insulting Turkishness’ fear ruling sets dangerous
precedent.
ISTANBUL, March 27 (Compass Direct News) – Fearing that a court-ordered
fine of two Turkish Christians here for "illegal collection of funds"
would set a precedent crippling to churches, their lawyer plans to
take the case to a European court.
Hakan Tastan and Turan Topal each paid the fine of 600 Turkish
lira (US$360) to a civil court in the Beyoglu district of Istanbul
yesterday. The verdict cannot be appealed within the Turkish legal
system, but their lawyer said he is considering taking the case to
the European Court of Human Rights.
The ruling refers to the men receiving church offerings without
official permission from local civil authorities. Nearly all Protestant
fellowships in Turkey are registered as associations, with very few
having status as a recognized religious body, and a strict application
of the law would limit the scope of churches collecting funds.
Although the punishment is a relatively small fine, their lawyer told
Compass there is now a precedent that authorities could use to harass
any church for collecting tithes and offerings.
"For now, this court decision is an individual decision, but we fear
in the future this could be carried out against all churches," said
defense attorney Haydar Polat.
Umut Sahin, spokesman for the Alliance of Protestant Churches of
Turkey, concurred that the case was worrisome for the country’s
small Protestant community and could set a disturbing precedent to
be against other congregations.
When originally charged, the two men were summoned to police
headquarters just before church services by three plainclothes
policemen waiting for Tastan at his church. Tastan and Topal were
given a "penalty" sheet from security police that ordered each to
pay the fine for breaking a civil law.
The court decision to fine them, enacted on Nov. 11, 2008 but
not delivered until March 13, denied their request to drop the
penalty. The two men claimed they were only collecting money from
their co-religionists.
Judge Hakim Tastan ruled at the First Magistrate Court that the two
men were guilty of violating section 29 of Civil Administrative Code
2860, which forbids the collection of money without official permission
from local district authorities.
In light of the charge of "insulting Turkishness," the two men believe
the smaller accusation of collecting money illegally is merely part of
a wider effort by the state to harass and discredit Turkish Christians.
"They are doing this to bother and intimidate us, possibly to pressure
us to leave the country," Tastan told Compass. "They have the intention
to hinder church establishment and the spread of the gospel."
Tastan has spoken publicly over his strong sense of pride in his
Turkish identity and frustration with state institutions biased
against religious minorities.
"This case is proof that Turkey’s legal system regarding human rights
isn’t acting in a just and suitable way," he said.
Difficult Circumstances
The civil court case was the second set of longstanding charges
against the two men. The first involves Turkey’s notorious Article 301,
a loosely-defined law that criminalizes insulting "the Turkish nation."
On Feb. 24 a Silivri court received the go-ahead from the Ministry of
Justice to try the men under Article 301. The crux of the first case
– originally leveled against them in 2007 by ultranationalist lawyer
Kemal Kerincsiz, now indicted in a national conspiracy to overthrow
the government – focused on the two men’s missionary efforts as
defaming Islam.
Due to lack of proof and no-shows by the prosecution team’s witnesses,
the converts from Islam believe they will be acquitted in their next
hearing on May 28.
Turkey has come under recent criticism over its handling of religious
minority rights by a Council of Europe report, accusing the country of
"wrong interpretation" of the Lausanne Treaty as a pretext for refusing
to implement minority rights, according to the Hurriyet Daily News.
The 1923 treaty, penned between Turkey and European powers following
the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, only recognizes Greeks, Jews and
Armenians as minority populations in Turkey.
More troublesome, Turkey’s basis of rights for its non-Muslim
minorities is built upon reciprocity with Greece’s treatment of its
Muslim minorities. This basis pushes both nations to a "lowest-common
denominator" understanding of minority rights, rather than a concept
of universal freedoms, the report said.
END